Atmosphere - Strictly Leakage

A Christmas gift to the fans that turned out to be one of the most beloved entries in the entire Atmosphere catalog. Originally released as a free download in December 2007, Strictly Leakage was Slug and Ant's deliberate step outside the official album cycle, a chance to make exactly the music they wanted to make without the weight of expectations or release schedules pressing down on them. The result is an album that crackles with a freedom and looseness that makes it feel unlike anything else in their discography.

The title nods in two directions simultaneously: to the act of leaking their own music and to the golden era hip-hop that inspired them to start making records in the first place. Ant went back to the funk and soul crates he had mined in the duo's earliest days, building sample-driven beats that feel like they were born alongside the classics that shaped the genre. Slug responded in kind, rapping with a renewed passion and a more carefree energy than he had brought to his recent releases, delivering endless wordplay through more technically intricate rhyme patterns while somehow sounding completely at ease doing it. Thirteen exclusive tracks of two artists having genuine fun flexing creative muscles they had not stretched in years, rewarding for them and even more rewarding for the listeners.

A brief and quickly sold-out vinyl pressing followed the initial free release, and for years fans were left chasing digital files to hear it. Now Strictly Leakage returns to vinyl properly, so that one of the most unique and joyful chapters in Atmosphere's long story can finally be owned and appreciated the way it deserves.